The growers of Darjeeling black tea plantation in India are becoming organic.

Pressure from international buyers and the need to protect the soil are driving the change.

Darjeeling Tea is organic. Growers instead claim that organic production helps maintain soil fertility, even if it means lower yields. Others say growers are under pressure from buyers in developed countries.

Darjeeling Tea is famous for its lightness and aroma and is popular all over the world. About 80 per cent of the nearly 9000 tons of tea produced annually in Darjeeling, West Bengal and surrounding areas in the Himalayas are exported to developed countries such as Germany, Japan, the United States and the United Kingdom.

The soil needs to be preserved

"of the 74 tea gardens operating in Darjeeling, about 50 have been completely converted to organic production," Sandeep Mukherjee, chief adviser to the Darjeeling Tea Association, told the third pole. "the rest are still growing organically or partially in accordance with traditional methods." Darjeeling Tea Association has 63 tea garden members.

"over the years, tea garden managers began to feel the adverse effects of global warming as tea mosquitoes and caterpillars began to attack tea trees [at high elevations]," Mukherjee added. "some pests, such as red spiders, which are usually found at low elevations, are found at a height of 5000 meters. Global warming has also caused rainfall to become unstable and wash away topsoil. Growers who use chemicals have decided to turn to organic agriculture to prevent soil erosion and protect topsoil by planting trees in the garden. "

A study conducted by Darjeeling Tea Research and Development Center found that temperatures rose by 0.51 degrees Celsius between 1993 and 2012. The annual rainfall decreased by 152.50 cm (the total annual rainfall varied between 226.64 and 558.03 cm), and the relative humidity decreased by 16.07%.

The use of chemicals

The researchers say the rampant use of chemicals in tea gardens began in the 1960s, when farms faced a decline in production because of aging tea trees.

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Malay Bhattacharia, an assistant professor in the department of tea science at the University of Northern Bengal, told the third pole: "as the tea bushes have survived for more than 100 years [when the area began to plant tea gardens], production began to decline." "it will take at least 10 years to replace the bushes. But producers think this will mean heavy losses. They use chemicals to extend the life expectancy of shrubs by another 20-25 years, but destroy the soil ecosystem. "

Bhattacharya added: "the presence of chemicals can affect the liver and kidneys, leading to health complications and neurological problems, as tea is the only product that is not washed before consumption." The owner of the garden began to realize the danger of using too many chemicals and decided to turn to organic agriculture. "

The factory in the Makaibari tea garden is processing tea. Photo source: Gurvinder Singh

Founded in 1857, Makaibari is the oldest tea garden in the world. It was the first to obtain organic certification in 1988. The garden, which covers an area of 248 hectares, produces 1,00000 kilograms per year, of which about 60 per cent is used for export.

"We use plant stems, citronella, Guatemalan licorice, weeping grasses and different types of legumes to make biodynamic earthworm compost," Sanjay Das, Makaibari's real estate manager, told The Third Pole. "it includes cow dung, which is used to make organic food for plants. Cow dung is also applied directly to the soil under the tea tree. We use an insect repellent spray made from herbs in the field. These don't kill insects, they scare them away. "

Sanjay Das, the manor manager of the Makaibari tea plantation, points to biodynamic earthworm composting.

The return of biodiversity

Growers claim that changes in organic tea cultivation are restoring biodiversity in the garden. "Biodiversity is almost extinct, but now we are finding change," said Naresh Parekh, a plantation manager at Tumsong, another tea plantation.